Yes mine does have holes. That piece gets gooey goodness all over it after a few sessions. I either clean it with iso when im cleaning the unit, or i try to smear my thumb with it and lick it off, LOL.

first of all, great community, and I hope that you can help. I've had my alfa for a year now, it was my first vaporizer and it was a great experience (never tried vaping before). Ten days ago I was cleaning the air path and small piece of cloth filled with ISO got somehow stuck between the air path and the oven. I forced the cloth with a thin metal stick and somehow managed to remove(break) lower part of the alfa where the lid(door) is. I removed the cloth, put the removed part back, everything connected perfectly and alfa was working again (for ten days straight). Yesterday, when I turned it on, it couldn't reach any of the temperature settings, green light blinking forever and alfa stayed cold.

My question is, could it be that somehow I contributed heater malfunction?

Is my warranty still valid because of broken part (I didn't touch the screws)?
Thanks

first of all, great community, and I hope that you can help. I've had my alfa for a year now, it was my first vaporizer and it was a great experience (never tried vaping before). Ten days ago I was cleaning the air path and small piece of cloth filled with ISO got somehow stuck between the air path and the oven. I forced the cloth with a thin metal stick and somehow managed to remove(break) lower part of the alfa where the lid(door) is. I removed the cloth, put the removed part back, everything connected perfectly and alfa was working again (for ten days straight). Yesterday, when I turned it on, it couldn't reach any of the temperature settings, green light blinking forever and alfa stayed cold.

My question is, could it be that somehow I contributed heater malfunction?

Is my warranty still valid because of broken part (I didn't touch the screws)?
Thanks

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im having trouble picturing this. Youre saying theres a seam between the oven and the air path and you got a bit of cloth stuck in the seam? And did you literally break something or did you just "dislocate" something that is supppsed to be relocateable in the construction of the unit?
if its not actually broken and you put it back together with no sign that anything happened, why not do a normal warranty claim and not tell them about what you did. But if something actually is broken, then IDK. i would still contact goboof and see if they can help ya out.
ive cleaned mine with a pipe cleaner 30 times now and had no idea there was a seam between the oven and path, or if there is, i cant tell when im plowing it with a pipe cleaner. i just assumed that the air path and oven were one piece. So maybe the alignment on yours was off to begin with? On mine its not possible to shred any cloth off the pipe cleaner.
As a sidenote, its a bad idea if the pipecleaner is heavily soaked in iso when you insert it. After dipping it in alcohol, the excess should be thoroughly wrung out so that its only damp. That way you avoid any runoff that could flow inside the unit from any of the seams as youre cleaning it. I think earlier in this thread someones unit may have failed because of that.

I think it's important to reiterate that the low and medium temps published by Goboof are probably inaccurate. Real world temps start out much lower than that, which works out awesome in my opinion. The temps stated by Goboof are likely just the extreme high point that gets reached after the unit has been on for a long time.

Goboof says: Low=190C/374F; medium= 210C/410F.

I say: Low=171-176C/340-350F; medium=199-204C/390-400F.

Then if you leave it on for long enough, the temps steadily creep up and eventually reach the printed spec, but my sessions don't always last long enough to reach those temps.

If medium was truly 410F right off the bat, herb would NOT taste as good as it does. The flavor on medium simply doesn't have a >400F taste, it tastes better than that at least in the beginning. This is great news IMO, the inaccuracy works out in our favor.

Low being 340-350 makes perfect sense because the taste on the first few hits is 7th heaven to me-- again it tastes better and has thinner clouds than what 374F would get you.

I have no idea what the high setting really is, and frankly don't care because I never use high anyway.

This is completely unlike the Ascent which stays rock solid at the temperature you select. In the video there's a moment where you can see the Alfa's LED is solid green, yet the temp on his thermometer is still rising.
I've never used the A/P or A/T settings but it seems like putting it on low and leaving the unit turned on for long enough results in a similar hike, starting at ~335F and topping out at the published spec of 374F maybe IDK, 3-10 minutes later. You're basically getting performance similar to the A/P and A/T settings whether you want it or not. (Either that or my unit is screwy)

I think it's important to reiterate that the low and medium temps published by Goboof are probably inaccurate. Real world temps start out much lower than that, which works out awesome in my opinion. The temps stated by Goboof are likely just the extreme high point that gets reached after the unit has been on for a long time.

Goboof says: Low=190C/374F; medium= 210C/410F.

I say: Low=171-176C/340-350F; medium=199-204C/390-400F.

Then if you leave it on for long enough, the temps steadily creep up and eventually reach the printed spec, but my sessions don't always last long enough to reach those temps.

If medium was truly 410F on this unit right off the bat, herb would NOT taste as good as it does. The flavor on medium simply doesn't have a >400F taste, it tastes better than that at least in the beginning. This is great news IMO, the inaccuracy works out in our favor.

Low setting being 340-350 makes perfect sense because the taste on the first few hits is 7th heaven to me with less visible vapor-- again it tastes better and has thinner clouds than what 374F would get you.

I have no idea what the high setting really is, and frankly don't care because I never use high anyway.

This is completely unlike the Ascent which stays rock solid at the temperature you select. In the video there's a moment where you can see the Alfa's LED is solid green, yet the temp on his thermometer is still rising.
I've never used the A/P or A/T settings but it seems like putting it on low and leaving the unit turned on for long enough results in a similar hike, starting at ~335F and topping out at the published spec of 374F maybe 5-10 minutes later. You're basically getting performance similar to the A/P and A/T settings whether you want it or not.

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That adds up to me , I find the Alfa taste best and biggest clouds when I turn it up from low to medium. 180cish.....Nice post! Lol time to give Alfa a run Tangerine Power

@vapeape77 Nice mouthpiece and picture. Could you share what is your glass ? A custom, some other accessories ?

Long time I haven't used my Alfa. Bought it before the winter coming and to celebrate new job and thus "stealth vaping". I now work at a place where there is a lot of "mod cig addict", I doubt I'll look stealth near to them hahaha..
But winter for sure will bring back Alfa in the rotation. So nice to get hands warmed while vaping.

@vapeape77 Nice mouthpiece and picture. Could you share what is your glass ? A custom, some other accessories ?

Long time I haven't used my Alfa. Bought it before the winter coming and to celebrate new job and thus "stealth vaping". I now work at a place where there is a lot of "mod cig addict", I doubt I'll look stealth near to them hahaha..
But winter for sure will bring back Alfa in the rotation. So nice to get hands warmed while vaping.

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Thanks! It's a @VapeFiend.com (maybe dm or email em) Crafty/Mighty glass mp, unfortunately looks like the item is no longer listed..... too bad since it's a prefect fit in the Alfa mouthpiece. A standard black plastic Crafty/Mighty mp can be squeezed into the Alfa mp for same stealthy hold. I get extremely baked 3/4 pack Alfa mid to top shelf run on low to med.

does anybody have any experience with sending Alfa for repair? I contacted Namastevapes where I bought the Alfa from and they told me that Goboof will assist me in the procedure. I sent two emails to Goboof with an explanation of malfunction and the proof of purchase provided by Namastevapes, but
they still don't answer. Do I wait for the reply, or can I just send the Alfa? Any thoughts?

It's disappointing for sure, your warranty should still be valid once the buyout is complete, unless of course the new co discontinues the Alfa. Maybe your headshop can help you with a different vape at deep discount?

Has anyone vaped "legal" herbs in the Alfa? If I ever need to stop using cannabis for drug testing reasons, I would like to keep vaping because the act of vaporizing is fulfilling even if it's not pot. I read a post on reddit about a guy who dumped the contents of a pomegranate green tea bag into his Arizer Solo and loved it. But my only concern would be that it would leave a permanent signature on the vape being used, and I don't really want the taste of my cannabis altered in any way (just my preference).
If it were you, would you strictly have one vape for pot and another vape for alternate herbs or would you be okay using the Alfa for pot one day, and peppermint/lemon balm the next day?

It's very sad, the Alfa is a great value vaporizer for stealth "on the go"sessions, personnaly I love it....but i understand how hard is the competition in the portables vaporizer market since a new vape is coming out every week!

OH NO. After having the Alfa for two years, the temp control stopped working. Any time I turn it on, it goes to the highest heat setting and stays there.

So sad, I loved this little thing.

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Bummer dude, I remember you had that original unit working well back when others like myself where getting replacements when Alfa first came out. Check out the sick Brick Jr with mighty dosing capsules, excellent quality in taste/clouds and reliable around the house, just turn and flip dose cap a few times. For on the go I have high hopes for the Pax3 as a stealth replacement if Alfa brand is toast....

Have had one do that also. I found the customer service great after a short wait for an email reply. I sent mine back for repair and ordered another as I liked the idea of running two side by side - one for indica dominant strains and one for the sativas. Original was returned a couple of weeks later and had a new oven and some internals replaced. Both have been great since other than the original one developed a slight quirk in that the light now stays solid green at full charge or solid red if some battery has been used when it's turned to off. As soon as the unit is turned on it works fine but then the light stays on when the unit is off. This very slowly drains the battery but doesn't badly affect the way I use it so I've not bothered sending it back again. I'm a fairly light toker but usually have a few strains to choose from and have found that the current strain can be written on the side in pencil, then wiped off and re-written when a refill is done. This avoids confusion as to what's in which vape and compensates for my slightly creative short term memory

Have had one do that also. I found the customer service great after a short wait for an email reply. I sent mine back for repair and ordered another as I liked the idea of running two side by side - one for indica dominant strains and one for the sativas. Original was returned a couple of weeks later and had a new oven and some internals replaced. Both have been great since other than the original one developed a slight quirk in that the light now stays solid green at full charge or solid red if some battery has been used when it's turned to off. As soon as the unit is turned on it works fine but then the light stays on when the unit is off. This very slowly drains the battery but doesn't badly affect the way I use it so I've not bothered sending it back again. I'm a fairly light toker but usually have a few strains to choose from and have found that the current strain can be written on the side in pencil, then wiped off and re-written when a refill is done. This avoids confusion as to what's in which vape and compensates for my slightly creative short term memory

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Read posts above, sounds like there is no support for Alfa due to buyout . I just sent a message on their website to see if I get any service.....

Were you guys using your Alfas every single day? I do. Makes me worry mine's going to do that eventually. Some say using portables every day long term is bad but that's exactly why I chose this over a Flowermate, the build quality is far superior (I hope that applies to the electronics portion of the build too). I feel like it's good for alot more than just stealth OTG use. This is conduction done right. Awesome taste, high hits me like a freight train, clouds are big on medium even with 2 second draws. Never had any off tastes/smells even on day 1. Almost no plastic in the construction. Glass MP mod so lips never get hot. The only beef I really have is draw resistance. I've hit a Volcano many times and I've never thought, "man, I wish the Alfa vapor was as good as this" ...I know it's alittle harsher than Volcano vapor, but my main thought was always "I wish the Alfa flowed as freely as this bag".
And AVB comes out perfect every time, no stirring, its never uneven, never burned, and no burnt taste until the 20th hit tells you its time for a new load. I hope this vape never ever croaks on me.

Were you guys using your Alfas every single day? I do. Makes me worry mine's going to do that eventually. Some say using portables every day long term is bad but that's exactly why I chose this over a Flowermate, the build quality is far superior (I hope that applies to the electronics portion of the build too). I feel like it's good for alot more than just stealth OTG use. This is conduction done right. Awesome taste, high hits me like a freight train, clouds are big on medium even with 2 second draws. Never had any off tastes/smells even on day 1. Almost no plastic in the construction. Glass MP mod so lips never get hot. The only beef I really have is draw resistance. I've hit a Volcano many times and I've never thought, "man, I wish the Alfa vapor was as good as this" ...I know it's alittle harsher than Volcano vapor, but my main thought was always "I wish the Alfa flowed as freely as this bag".
And AVB comes out perfect every time, no stirring, its never uneven, never burned, and no burnt taste until the 20th hit tells you its time for a new load. I hope this vape never ever croaks on me.

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No joke after coming back from a weeks vacation and reading Mike Ms post, one of my two Alfas did the exact same thing. It just blinks all the way to max heat when set to low, super dark abv and poor taste. Only work around is hit it early and turn it off and on during session so not good at all.... Anyway this Alfa lasted 22 months in a rotation with other vapes using it about every other day. I hope my other Alfa last another year at least.

And yes we have zero support from Goboof, no responses this week about servicing my covered unit. What is going on with this co? They shouldn't just leave that website up like all is well....